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Quitting Smoking

Ok so flavored tooth pick has worked. So far. But it's too soon. Did anyone try sunflower seed?
 
I quit in 2000 and did the cold turkey method.I believe it's the only way,cause if you want to quit you will do it. I got tired of the lingering smell . I never smoked in the house,but having the clothes in the hamper stinking up the place wasn't pleasant .

Just stick to your guns and you will accomplish your goal.It's worth the aggravation your going to go through.I truly believe the withdrawal is more habit then it is the nicotine addiction,which will go away sooner then you realize.But you will have to deal with learning new habits to keep yourself occupied .
I did miss having certain cigarettes for awhile though. Took many years for the urge to go away.

I see,your from thousand oaks. I miss playing elkins ranch ,Sterling hills,olivis links and especially rustic canyon
 
Wonton said:
Ok so flavored tooth pick has worked. So far. But it's too soon. Did anyone try sunflower seed?
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Don't spit them on the greens! (Or tee boxes!)
 
I quit with a bit of a process, but I would post in a thread on here from a few years ago and found it helped me hold myself accountable. I would have a smoke a couple of times but wouldn't let that deter me. I also would challenge myself and go 4 hours without one then 8 hours and so on. I was smoke free for about 9 months.

Now a couple of years back I did go out golfing and drinking with a former boss and well that put me back to smoking and I haven't tried since to quit again.
 
Wonton said:
Ok so flavored tooth pick has worked. So far. But it's too soon. Did anyone try sunflower seed?
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Sunflower seeds are a great crutch, They keep your hands busy and takes the craving away for nicotine.

I went thru a quit stage several years ago and they helped a ton, However with the stresses of self employment and being an only parent I gave back in about 5 years ago.

Good luck to you , we are pulling for you !
 
Wonton said:
I didn't realize how bad the smell is. I went on a date recently and she asked me if I smoked. Crazy thing is, I didn't have one for a few hours prior to the date but she still could smell it on me. She said smoking was one of her deal breakers so that was that.
That should be another motivator
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this is actually what got me to quit. I travel alot for work, and would arrange a non-smoking hotel room when travelling so I wouldn't sit there in the hotel room and chain smoke while working on the laptop in the evening. I figured, if I made it harder for myself to smake, I wouldn't smoke as much.

Anyway...I'm checking into a hotel one evening and the desk clerk was looking puzzled as he was finding my reservation. He says "they have you down for a non-smoking room, is that right?" About then, the light bulb goes off in my head and I'm thinking "this dude can smell me from across the check-in counter." That was all I needed. I'd been trying to stop and was on patches but it hadn't been working. Once I had that epiphany, it was a piece of cake. Within 2 weeks I was done for good, a

I've been an on-off smoker for years. At my peak, 2-3 packs/day. Once I had that mental switch, I was done. I still have occasional cravings and have put on some weight, but it's been 13 years this past April.

Find that epiphany...the rest will be easy. :act-up: Good luck to you!
 
Cold turkey is the only way to quit. Takes 21 days to break a habit. When I went cold turkey, mind you it was easier for me because I still smoke cigars, I carried Tic Tacs. Everytime I had the urge for a cigarette, I popped a Tic Tac. Cigarette free for 7 1/2 years.

Good luck...it takes discipline.
 
VegasMav said:
Cold turkey is the only way to quit. Takes 21 days to break a habit. When I went cold turkey, mind you it was easier for me because I still smoke cigars, I carried Tic Tacs. Everytime I had the urge for a cigarette, I popped a Tic Tac. Cigarette free for 7 1/2 years.

Good luck...it takes discipline.
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Now I think back, I don't even know how I started. It could be from drinking and smoking socially. Just a sad sad habit.
i did the math too. Let's say a pack is $5 times 365 (if you are a pack a day guy like I was) that equals out to $1825. That's a lot of money.
 
Wonton said:
Now I think back, I don't even know how I started. It could be from drinking and smoking socially. Just a sad sad habit.
i did the math too. Let's say a pack is $5 times 365 (if you are a pack a day guy like I was) that equals out to $1825. That's a lot of money.
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That's a very nice upgrade to the whole bag (if you need the added incentive of a reward down the road)...
 
Wonton

Congratulations on a brilliant decision. I quit 18 months ago. I smoked between 30 and 40 a day.

1. Check out quittrain.com. Free, non commercial support group. We talk quitting, share experiences et al. It really helped me.
2. Read Allen Carr. The Easyway to Quit Smoking.

I quit Cold Turkey. It is absolutely doable. Cravings? If you ignore them, they just go away. Embrace them, they are signs that you are winning.

You can absolutely do this buddy. Great work so far!
 
I used to smoke 1-2 packs/day for about 10 years. When my wife got pregnant 6 1/2 years ago, that was it. I initially went with Nicorette, probably for about 9 months. I personally chose the original (worst) flavor, as I didn't want to enjoy it...but it definitely curbed the nicotine cravings. Eventually I weaned off the Nicorette to regular gum, just to fulfill the habit...and then about 6 months after that I was done. I'd be lying if I said there weren't time over the last 6+ years where a cigarette didn't still sound amazing (w/ morning coffee, stuck in traffic, on the gold course...), but I haven't bought a pack since.

Best of luck to you Wonton!
 
El Bandito said:
Wonton


2. Read Allen Carr. The Easyway to Quit Smoking.
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I highly recomend everyone read Allen Carr! Easyway to quit drinking is another good read of his.
 
I can't claim to have quit for a very long time. December through April, and now June through the present. There was a small hiccup in May.

The first week sucks.
You can't give in to temptation when one of your buddies lights up one. Trust me, it never ends up being just one.
I used patches.
If you are quitting cold turkey, gum would work well to satisfy craves since you can chew the gum only when having craves if you choose to do it that way.
I like jolly ranchers instead of mints, but then, I only had maybe 5 jolly ranchers a day, which isn't bad in terms of calories.
Exercise helps with craves.
It's totally worth it, you can do it.

~Rock
 
I haven't had a cigarette in over 3 years now after 40 years of smoking.

I used the patch for 2-3 weeks to get over the initial withdrawal, which was awful. If you do get the patch, a word of wisdom: don't fall asleep without taking it off. You will have the most vivid, technicolor, and weird dreams you could imagine.

Good luck, it's a tough road to hoe.
 
I have quit only about 20 times or so. I am here to say its totally a mental thing. For me the ONLY thing that helps is exercise. When I am exercising and being active the thought for a smoke never crosses my mind. I have quit for a year before, but the minute I start getting lazy and I see people around me smoking the thoughts creep back in. The wife has been stressing me out lately and I have been smoking more. The thing for me though is if its not around and nobody else is doing it, I don't need to either, but the minute someone lights one up, I'm done.

So long story short, my method is exercise. Speaking of which I need to join a new gym. :act-up:
 
I personally did cold turkey in 2005 and haven't purchased a pack sense.

However, it was more of a social thing for me than anything else...

I will say however that my father who was a very heavy smoker for over 15 years did the patch but his doctor told him "not to" follow the instructions - start with stage 3 for a week or so, then go to stage 2 - if you feel cravings go back to stage 3 and so on. About 2-3 months later he was good to go.

He combined that with gum to satisfy the "mouth fetish" which he still chews to this day.

Now another case was my good friend who smoked no joke 2.5-3 packs a day (would go outside at least 2X just at the range to light one up).

He did hypnosis, cold turkey, and now is on the gum - while it might work for some time he usually goes back to them. However, every 6-7 months after he quits he goes back to them (I read somewhere this is the "typical" relapse timeline).

Also found this article on a timeline and side affects post-quitting: http://www.achoice2live.com/quit-smoking-quick-reference-guides/quit-smoking-side-effects-timeline/

All in all good luck!!!
 
Thanks for the encouraging words guys! I know everyone has different methods; I guess it's just matter of finding mine.
 
Wonton said:
Thanks for the encouraging words guys! I know everyone has different methods; I guess it's just matter of finding mine.
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Yep. Its a personal thing.

But I truly believe that you must understand that smoking never did anything for you. You 'forced' yourself to like it when you had those first furtive, exciting puffs that made you feel like a tough guy (even though your body was telling you it wanted to puke).

We convince ourselves that we smoke to relax, to wind down, to prepare, to concentrate, to enjoy a meal, after sex, with a drink...etc etc.....ALL of those things are better as a non-smoker, honest.

Keep going Wonton - it gets better day by day. Your health, your sense of well being and your bank balance. It gets easier and easier too.
 
Thanks!
Yeah today isn't bad as it was yesterday. I WILL get through it this time!
 
Keep it up. My dad quit cold turkey and he initially put on a bunch of weight but that was partially because he ended up having his appendix out the second week of him quitting and he couldn't really do anything but sit around and eat. He said he has never wanted to go back and loved the extra money.
 
Wonton said:
Thanks!
Yeah today isn't bad as it was yesterday. I WILL get through it this time!
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Good man.

Smoking is not an option. If smoking is no longer an option, then no point in craving.

Keep on keeping on!
 
Quick tip: when you get a craving, grab one of those dum-dum lollipops- the ones you used to get from the bank when you hit the drive-thru teller way back when. It gives your hands and mouth something to do, which is part of the itch


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